Verse of the Day

Thursday, August 21, 2014

Pastor's Sermon Notes: Standing the World on its Head with King Jesus (Acts 17:1-9)

Standing the World on its Head with King Jesus
Acts 17:1-9


1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, 3 Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. 4 And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people. 6 And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; 7 Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. 8 And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. 9 And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go.

Outline:

I. The Responses to the Preaching of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:1-5)
II. The Accusations against the Preachers of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:6-9)

I. The Responses to the Preaching of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:1-5)

1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, 3 Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ. 4 And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.

1. The Realities of the Gospel (17:1-3)
2. The Responses to the Gospel (17:4-5)

1. The Realities of the Gospel (17:1-3)

1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures, 3 Opening and alleging, that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.

1) The Personal Realities of the Gospel
2) The Practical Realities of the Gospel
3) The Primary Realities of the Gospel

What is it to preach the Gospel?

1) The Personal Realities of the Gospel (17:1-2d)

1 Now when they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica, where was a synagogue of the Jews: 2 And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days

(1) How this Gospel got to them - …passed through…came to…went in unto…
They didn’t come to him. Paul took it to them.

(2) Where this preaching took place - in the synagogue of the Jews
This was Paul’s normal practice.

(3) How long this preaching went on - three sabbath days
            This was not a “fast food” drive through approach, or easy believism!

2) The Practical Realities of the Gospel (17:2d-3a)

reasoned with them out of the Scriptures, opening and alleging

(1) Reasoned - The mind must be brought along. This is the verb. The two participles that follow explain what was involved in doing this.

the Scriptures = the Old Testament

The starting point is the Scriptures. The Word of God is the content the Apostle’s appeal to human reason is based on. This reasoning starts with a supernatural revelation. Paul is not reasoning to the Scriptures, but from the Scriptures. This is an inherently presuppositional approach to evangelism. The Spirit of God works with the Word of God to bring the dead to life and to illumine dark minds. The Spirit of God does not work with the natural man in his deadness in sin and the darkness of his fallen mind to get to the Scriptures, but vice versa. If we are not reasoning out of the Scriptures in evangelism we have the cart before the horse. “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” (Rom. 10:17)

(2) Opening or Explaining - The understanding must be developed as a clear case is made.

This is exposition. This is the first step, the initial aspect in reasoning from the Scriptures. This has to do with the meaning of the words, phrases, and propositions in the Scriptures in their contexts.

(3) Alleging or Proving - The conviction of the will must be engaged by being confronted with indisputable evidence.

This has to do with the implications of the meaning brought out in exposition. This is apologetics, i.e., the defense of the faith. This may be thought of as application. In this case it is the application of what came out in the exposition as convincing evidence to establish specific points which follow in the rest of the verse.

3) The Primary Realities of the Gospel (17:3b-f)

that Christ must needs have suffered, and risen again from the dead; and that this Jesus, whom I preach unto you, is Christ.

(1) The Necessity of the Sufferings of the Messiah - Christ must needs have suffered

(2) The Necessity of the Resurrection of the Messiah - and risen again from the dead

(3) The Identification of Jesus as the Messiah - Jesus is Christ

2. The Responses to the Gospel (17:4-5)

4 And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few. 5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.

1) The Response of Faith (17:4)
2) The Response of Unbelief (17:5)

1) The Response of Faith (17:4)

And some of them believed, and consorted with Paul and Silas; and of the devout Greeks a great multitude, and of the chief women not a few.

(1) The confirmation of those who responded in faith:
(2) The categories and numbers of those who responded in faith:

(1) The confirmation of those who responded in faith:

(i) believed - were persuaded - i.e., were brought to faith

(ii) consorted - joined

(2) The categories and numbers of those who responded in faith:

(i) Jews - some

(ii) devout Greeks - great multitude

(iii) chief women - not a few

2) The Response of Unbelief (17:5)

 5 But the Jews which believed not, moved with envy, took unto them certain lewd fellows of the baser sort, and gathered a company, and set all the city on an uproar, and assaulted the house of Jason, and sought to bring them out to the people.

(1) moved with envy - This is a heart issue provoked and exposed by the Gospel.

(2) lewd fellows of the baser sort - Some bully boys are needed to do their dirty work.

(3) mob - They can’t get what they want by legitimate or legal means.

(4) riot - The peace must be disturbed. There is no peace possible between the preachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the enemies of both the Gospel and Christ.

(5) assault - Who is Jason? Only here and possibly in Corinth with Paul (salutation in Rom. 16:21)

II. The Accusations against the Preachers of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:6-9)

 6 And when they found them not, they drew Jason and certain brethren unto the rulers of the city, crying, These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also; 7 Whom Jason hath received: and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus. 8 And they troubled the people and the rulers of the city, when they heard these things. 9 And when they had taken security of Jason, and of the other, they let them go.

1. Accusation #1 - They have turned the world upside down (17:6)
2. Accusation #2 - They violate Caesar’s decrees in affirming that Jesus is King (17:7)

These are a mixture of truth and falsehood.

1. Accusation #1 - They have turned the world upside down (17:6)

These that have turned the world upside down are come hither also

turned the world upside down  - This is a good translation, with which the English Standard Version and the Holman Christian Standard Bible agree, but is often misunderstood as if it were intended in a positive sense.

Had they done so? Or, would the effect of the Gospel preached be such that it would do so?

“This is the glorious doctrine which was the strength of the Apostles when they went forth to the Gentiles to preach a new religion. They began, a few poor fishermen, in a despised corner of the earth. They turned the world upside down. They changed the face of the Roman empire. They emptied the heathen temples of their worshippers, and made the whole system of idolatry crumble away. And what was the weapon by which they did it all? It was free forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ.”
- J. C. Ryle (1816-1900), Old Paths

“As someone has put it, the man who believes above all else in the will of God, may turn the world upside down, if only he is convinced he is an instrument of God’s will. By the same token, however, he can be as unresistant to circumstances as butter to a knife, so long as he is convinced that the knife is God.”
- S. Lewis Johnson,”The Doctrine of Election, Part V”, on the SLJ Institute at http://sljinstitute.net/systematic-theology/soteriology/the-doctrine-of-election-part-v/ [accessed 16 AUG 2014].

“He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the Son hath not life (John 5:12).’ Stunned, I realized what was the obvious truth: to know Jesus Christ is to have eternal life!...My world turned over. The experience was like being blindfolded, taken to an unknown place and then having the blindfold stripped off. The ecstatic joy I felt cannot be described…”
- Douglas Higgins, Autobiography of a Yorkshire Christian (Carlisle, PA: The Banner of Truth Trust, n.d.).

“The Gospel we preach should embrace both history and prophecy all of which directly impacts the present.  What has already happened and the prophecies that have already been fulfilled must be seen in connection to what God will yet do in order for us to be faithful messengers of His Gospel.  Simply put, the Bible’s teachings concerning the future, prophecies as yet unfulfilled, must not be left out of our Gospel ministry.  Let us turn the world upside down by proclaiming the whole counsel of God!”
- John T. Jeffery, "Between Two Worlds" (Is. 61:1-2), sermon preached at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA (27 DEC 2009).

2. Accusation #2 - They violate Caesar’s decrees in affirming that Jesus is King (17:7)

these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, one Jesus

Another half-truth in their false accusation in spite of themselves. It renders their accusation as false, yet indicates that they did get something of the implications and applications of the Gospel being preached.

If we are not accused of this then something is wrong. This is a truth that needs always to be clearly proclaimed, and often is not. Indeed, there are those theologians and preachers who would deny that Jesus is King, at least not yet. And He is not just another king, as these accusers phrase it. Confessing Him as Lord, and affirming His ascension to the throne in glory, does not allow for any denial that He is King of kings and Lord of lords. He always has been. His own confession was that all authority on earth and in heaven has been entrusted to Him. He certainly King Jesus now that He has ascended into glory and been enthroned there by the Father.  He surely will always be King Jesus, and will be seen as such when every knee bows and every tongue confesses Him as such at His second Advent.

He is Lord.
He is Lord.
He is risen from the dead, and He is Lord.
Every knee shall bow.
Every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.

Conclusion:

I. The Responses to the Preaching of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:1-5)

1. The Realities of the Gospel (17:1-3)

1) The Personal Realities of the Gospel (17:1-2d)

2) The Practical Realities of the Gospel (17:2d-3a)

3) The Primary Realities of the Gospel (17:3b-f)

2. The Responses to the Gospel (17:4-5)

1) The Response of Faith (17:4)

2) The Response of Unbelief (17:5)

II. The Accusations against the Preachers of the Gospel at Thessalonica (17:6-9)

1. Accusation #1 - They have turned the world upside down (17:6)

2. Accusation #2 - They violate Caesar’s decrees in affirming that Jesus is King (17:7)

[Sermon preached 17 AUG 2014 by Pastor John T. “Jack” Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown, PA.]

Resources on Acts:

G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, eds., Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), pp. 513-606.

Paul Barnett, The Birth of Christianity: The First Twenty Years, After Jesus, Vol. 1 (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2005).

Darrell L. Bock, Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, eds. Robert W. Yarbrough and Robert H. Stein (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007).
                                                  
F. F. Bruce, The Acts of the Apostles: The Greek Text with Introduction and Commentary, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1951, 1952).

I. Howard Marshall, Acts: An Introduction And Commentary, Vol. 5 in Tyndale New Testament Commentaries, gen. ed. Leon Morris (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1980; 2008 reprint).

David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles, The Pillar New Testament Commentaries, gen. ed. D. A. Carson (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2009).

John B. Polhill, Acts, Vol. 26 in The New American Commentary, gen. ed. David S. Dockery (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, Publishers, 1992).

Eckhard J. Schnabel, Acts, Vol. 5 in the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, gen. ed. Clinton E. Arnold (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012).

William H. Willimon, Acts, in Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, series ed. James Luther Mays, New Testament ed. Paul J. Achtemeier (Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).

Resources on Paul:

Kenneth E. Bailey, Paul Through Mediterranean Eyes: Cultural Studies in 1 Corinthians  (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2011).

F. F. Bruce, Paul: Apostle of the Heart Set Free (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1977).

D. A. Carson, The Gagging of God: Christianity Confronts Pluralism (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), pp. 496-501.

W. J. Conybeare and J. S. Howson, The Life, Times and Travels of St. Paul, 2 vols. in 1, unabridged American ed. (New York: E. B. Treat U Co., 1869); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=Bn1CAAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 12 FEB 2013].

Adolf Deissmann, Paul: A Study in Social and Religious History, 2nd ed., trans. William E. Wilson (New York: Harper Torchbooks, n.d.).

F. W. Farrar, The Life and Work of St. Paul (New York: E. P. Dutton and Co., 1889); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=RB2KeCSM6KsC&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 12 FEB 2013].

Bruce N. Fisk, “Paul: Life and Letters”, in The Face of New Testament Studies: A Survey of Recent Research, ed. Scot McKnight and Grant R. Osborne (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2004), pp. 283-325.

Richard B.Gaffin, Jr., "Acts and Paul", 46 lectures (MP3 format), WTS Resources Media Center on Westminster Theological Seminary at http://wts.edu/resources/media.html?paramType=audio&filterTopic=5&filterSpeaker=10&filterYear=2005 [accessed 20 MAR 2013].

Frank J. Goodwin, A Harmony of the Life of the St. Paul According to the Acts of the Apostles and the Pauline Epistles (New York: American Tract Society, 1895); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=YgpEAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 12 FEB 2013].

Richard N. Longenecker, The Ministry And Message Of Paul (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1971).

Richard N. Longenecker, Paul, Apostle Of Liberty (New York: Harper & Row, 1964).

Richard N. Longenecker, ed., The Road From Damascus : The Impact Of Paul's Conversion On His Life, Thought, And Ministry (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997).

Richard N. Longenecker, Studies In Paul, Exegetical And Theological (Sheffield : Sheffield Phoenix Press, 2004).

J. Gresham Machen, The Origin of Paul's Religion: The James Sprunt Lectures Delivered at Union Theological Seminary in Virginia (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1925).

Leon Morris, The Apostolic Preaching of the Cross (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1955).

John Pollock, The Apostle: A Life of Paul, 3rd ed. (Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 1969, 2012); also published as The Man Who Shook the World (Wheaton: Victor Books, 1972; originally The Apostle: A Life of Paul, New York: Doubleday, 1969).

Stanley E. Porter, Paul in Acts, in Library of Pauline Studies, gen. ed. Stanley E. Porter (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, Inc., 1999; 2001 reprint of The Paul of Acts: Essays in Literary Criticism, Rhetoric and Theology, in Wissenschaftliche Untersuchungen zum Neuen Testament 115, by Mohr Siebeck, Tubingen).

W. M. Ramsay, The Cities of St. Paul: Their Influence on his Life and Thought (New York: A. C. Armstrong and Son; London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1908); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=JryEbmKool0C&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 13 FEB 2013].

W. M. Ramsay, Pauline and Other Studies in Early Christian History (New York: A. C. Armstrong and Son, 1906); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=-1ZJAAAAYAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 13 FEB 2013].

W. M. Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveler and the Roman Citizen, 10th ed. (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1907); on Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) at http://www.ccel.org/ccel/ramsay/paul_roman.html [accessed 13 FEB 2013].

W. M. Ramsay, The Teaching of Paul in terms of The Present Day: The Deems Lectures in New York University (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1914); on Internet Archive at http://ia600404.us.archive.org/2/items/teachingofpaulin00rams/teachingofpaulin00rams.pdf [accessed 13 FEB 2013].

A. T. Robertson, Epochs in the Life of Paul: A Study of Development in Paul's Character (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1974).

Eckhard J. Schnabel, Paul The Missionary: Realities, Strategies And Methods (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2008).

Udo Schnelle, Apostle Paul: His Life and Theology, trans. M. Eugene Boring (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2003; trans. from Paulus: Leben und Denken, Berlin: Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co., n.d.).

Thomas R. Schreiner, Paul, Apostle of God's Glory in Christ: A Pauline Theology (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2001).

James Stalker, The Life of St. Paul, (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1885; rev. ed. 2010 by Kessinger Publishing from 1912 ed.); on Google Books at http://books.google.com/books?id=vT0HAAAAQAAJ&printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&q&f=false [accessed 7 FEB 2013].


James Ironside Still, St. Paul on Trial (London: Student Christian Movement, 1923).

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